Short-term sprints beat rigid long-term plans

You’ve always been told to plot your life like a highway, with one clear destination. But think back to the last time you genuinely felt alive—was it after you chased a rigid goal, or after you tried something new on a whim? Maybe it was the weekend you took that pottery class. Or the week you experimented with Italian cooking. You want to be mindful and steady—but sometimes that mindset leaves you stuck in a lane that no longer fits, long after your passion has coasted away.

The truth is, your next path isn’t a straight shot. It’s a series of sprints—short-term trials that teach you what works, and what doesn’t, without burning months of effort on the wrong choice. When you flirt with possibilities, your curiosity lights the way, and you learn so much more about who you really are and what you truly love. That’s far better than guessing your perfect fit at age twenty and promising yourself you’ll never look back.

The psychologist Herminia Ibarra calls it test-and-learn. You run quick experiments—shadow a designer, launch a blog, talk to a mentor—and then pause to see what stuck. You adjust your sails before the wind changes direction on you. This approach frees you from the fear of wasted time, because each micro-experiment brings clarity and confidence. And it keeps you agile so you can pivot to your best match instead of sinking into a career dead end.

You’ve penciled in quick micro-experiments—one month on a new skill, one hour a week of shadowing—so now let’s burnish that practice. Carve out that one-hour block as an immovable appointment, and treat it like a date with your future self. Then finish strong with a two-minute journal entry: what felt energizing, what burned you out, and what surprised you. Repeat next week without overthinking it. This rapid cycle of try, reflect, and adjust will steer you fast toward the work that truly fits.